Namaste

We had a party in Gotthatar... We colored and played games. We ate cookies... and I thought that should be enough to make a good with party. We had a lot of fun, but as I was preparing to leave, Ramilla made me sing for them. So I did, then they said that I had to dance. I told them that I couldn't dance without music. So they all started to clap and sing Nepali folk tunes. Then, Suresh started to dance... and I couldn't help but join him. So for the next half hour, I danced and learn to dance with the kids and women.

This was definitely the highlight of my Nepal experience.

They all ran out to watch me walk away, and of course said 'Namaste'.

This was the hardest day... harder than climbing the Chola Pass with no skin on my feet.

My children of Gottathar

Suresh's little sister sleeping as we played

I'm going to Everest... do you want to come?

Simon Says

Head Shoulders Knees and Toes

The boys

Film of me folk dancing!

My women. (Radika's in the middle w/ me)

The only time I really cried was when I had to say good bye to these women. I gave Radika a hug, and the tears just came... totally unexpected. They made me promise to come back (with a husband).

Party with VSN.

Currently there are so many volunteers. It was an early going away party for Rick, Jessica, Hanna, and me. The new group is pretty young (I think because it's summer).



See below what these amazing women have done in such a short time!

I love them so much, and I'm so proud of their efforts and enthusiasm.

Our last Sunday with the young adults

Church members

I see this cow everyday when I walked to Gottathar. It has a tika. :)

Me in the recording studio

We ended up using a different voice for narration, but it was fun to record. I even sang a little between takes.

Young Monks

Monkey Temple... sans monkeys.

Just as I was leaving (around 9:30 am) all the monkeys started running up the stairs to the temple. It was actually really great to watch. I have video footage of the little monkeys hanging on the moms' stomachs as they ran. Monkey temple is one of the oldest temples in Nepal. It also unique because it has a Buddhist stupa and a Hindu shrine.

Spinning the prayer wheels at the Monkey Temple.

I went early in the morning, so I saw many locals worshiping. Rashan, a Nepali guy that I met there, showed me around and gave me interesting facts etc. about the temple.

A little boy on the side of the road.

Just Friends

PDA is not acceptable in Nepal (unless you're a guy). Everywhere there are guys, old men, young boys holding hands or with their arms around each other. It is totally cultural. Friends are just affectionate. Men and women (husbands and wives even) do not show affection in public ever!

Women working as a walked down the street.

Me, Riza, Laxmi

Riza is the daughter of Tej, VSN's director. Laxmi is the housekeeper for both our home and the VSN office. Laxmi has two little children, a boy and girl, but she spends most of her time working... sadly. She is always happy though. She speaks no English, so it was good to practice Nepali w/ her. Riza and I bonded one day as we sang "itsy bitsy spider" and "bah bah black sheep". Now she won't leave me alone if I'm in the room. During our going away party, Riza kept us entertained by singing the same songs over and over again. She's so beautiful! Her mother, Ranu, is gorgeous.

Just a man I was walking behind on the way to the VSN office.

I started to get paranoid as my time grew short, that I did not have images that adequately captured my daily experience in Nepal.

Abines, Me and Bryony at the Editing Suite
This is the room where I've been spending most of my time. I arrive before 7:30 because Ranjit, one of the assistant, has to go to animation class at 7:30. Bryony had difficulty dealing with interpretation... having a 3rd party tell Abines when that we wanted to shave off a half second from a clip... was really frustrating. Anyway, we convinced them to teach us how to use the editing software. It sped up the process, but we are still super slow. I thought Bryony had really good taste, and I'd seen some pictures she'd taken, so I asked her to help her with the project. It turns out, she was an ad exec for huge companies like Dove and Nestle. We both have artistic backgrounds and totally saw eye to eye on where the film was going. Bryony is awesome... a great friend.

Goodbye to Rick

He is off to graduate from medical school, so he wasn't that sad to go. It was wierd when a new volunteer moved in his room. Sean from England arrived at 2:00 am. When Rick left, they made momos ( a huge feast)... Thankfully the new kids in the house can pull their weight eating 150 momos.

Hunchha

Namaste

Yesterday there was another strike, so I walked to town, so I could work on the film. It took me an hour and a half. Sounds long, but I did 6 -10 hour trekking days... Actually, I got a ride part way with Sugandha because he had to pick someone up from the airport. Apparently it was risky, but we drove with a sign on the car that said tourist (and even better, a white person in the front seat to look official). We were going in different directions, so he dropped me after a few minutes. A bus came - let me stop here and clarify that the day before, the Maoists had announced the Banda for the following day. Banda is the word for strike, but that is a misleading translation. The drivers are not striking.... the rebels are preventing anyone from using transportation. They throw bricks at buses and burn tires if you are on the road. Back to the story, so a bus came. I got on, and we drove for about a minute. Then some guys with black arm bands stopped the bus and made us all get off. I later found out that they were Maoists... they weren't violent at all. So I walked. Good thing it was early in the morning.

I don't know why I am always talking about the strike... it is such a minor part of my life.

The other night, I watched some traditional dance. It was actually Hindu religious dancing, where they tell stories. We were coached through yoga breathing (closed eyes etc) for about 20 minutes before the dancing began. And on the dance floor was a little god (statue) with candles etc. They were performing it for her. They used masks and lots of hand gestures. It was really interesting.

I was invited to lunch with a family in the village I go to. I see them everytime I walk by, but they are not involved in any of my classes. Anyway, we were eating and I asked the mother why she did not come to the mother's group. (VSN gives classes every other week to mothers about hand washing, wound care, nutrition, etc.) I found out that they did not know about my English classes, the knitting class, the health classes... nothing. I was confused because they live next door to where the classes are held. It turns out, they had not been invited. I don't know why. I am frustrated, but also glad. If this is happening in one small village, I'm sure it is happening elsewhere. I let the VSN staff know, so we can address it.

Right now I am off to Gottathar to see my kids. We are having a "party" which will include singing Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, playing simon says and coloring. I will miss the kids the most when I go.

I'm off to walk in the heat :) I'm using an umbrella to block the sun, so I'll still be super white when I come back!

Strike!

Namaste!

Wow the days are going by way to quickly! My days are packed... I've realized that I have not seen a lot of the essential tourist sites around the Kathmandu area (even 20 minutes from my house) because I've spent most of my time w/ the volunteer work. I know that sounds noble and altruistic, but the truth is that I just didn't bother to schedule it. I am going to try to get to the Monkey Temple and Baktapur before I go. However, I won't get to everything, so I guess I just have to come back... :)

Yesterday I woke up at 4:30 ( I usually get up at 5:00 or 5:30) I went to the roof and watched the sunrise. The smog is pretty bad, but you can see the outline of the Himalayas in the mornings. I love the mornings because from 5 to about 8 the weather is tolerable. After 830 it just gets hot. Even the evenings are pretty bad. We haven't had rain for a while... the rain usually cools things down.

I have a new respect for filmmakers... I spend all of my free time working on this project. Insomnia is actually helpful.

A couple updates: The leader of the landless community was able to return after paying a ransom fee. He is unharmed which is an indication that the Maoists are a little less severe than a few years ago, when abducted persons would regularly be tortured or killed. Despite the situation, the road was able to be installed in the community. This was a joint effort with the people and VSN. Each house along the road was asked to give 20 rupees (about 30 cents) and 5 bags of sand. VSN subsidized the costs and provided the trucks to transport the gravel.

This past week, there has been a slightly different mood in Kathmandu. On Sunday the Maoists led a transportation strike. All transportation (not just public) was forbidden. If someone attempted to ride their motorcycle or use their car... their tires would be set on fire. This happens frequently, but usually it is for buses only or taxis only. I've seen and smelled a lot of burnt tires, but nothing in action. It's interesting... all the volunteers found a way to make it to their commitments... Bryony (who usually takes a bus an hour to get into Pepsicola, our neighborhood) rented a bicycle and rode here on the empty streets. Two other volunteers walked an hour or more... Every volunteer was at our volunteer meeting that evening (even though many of the Nepali staff were unable to attend). We are all so committed! It is awesome!

For almost two weeks, there has been a teacher's strike. It is unclear who initiated it, but there is no organized union, so many teachers are unhappy about the strike even though it is an effort to raise their meager salaries. Apparently in the beginning days of the strike some teachers who tried to return to work were beaten. In the meantime... the students and teachers listen to the radio every morning to see in the strike is over. I visited my kids in Gottathar... they work in the fields, but mostly they are just hanging out. The strike worked in our advantage last week because when we visited the orphans all children were available to see the doctors and go to our workshops.

I want to tell you all about my kids in Gottathar as well as my knitting group. And I was in the sound studio all yesterday... that was an adventure! I met a Nepali pop star! Anyway, I have to go, so you'll have to hear about it later.

Namaste

a supplement to my thoughts

So everyone should visit Rick's blog. He has loads more photos and details about our trek than I do. He also has the luxury of a fast laptop... maybe when I get back to the states, I'll post more photos. It's interesting isn't it... most of his shots are scenery, and mine are all of me me me. I should be the least narcissistic person after this trip (days with out bathing would do that for you). http://www.rickhenriksen3.blogspot.com/

Visuals for you!

Radhika, the mother of the Gottathar village showing me what they have done in a month. I don't know if you can tell the quality... but trust me... it is amazing! These women didn't know what to do with a knitting needle a month ago!! I can't stop beaming about this!

My knitting class from the landless community. Fortunately our teacher, Dilmaya on my right, is from the community... so I don't have to be around for it to continue.

The most rewarding part of me week is teaching these girls basic sewing skills.

I am spending my mornings in the studio editing the film, and in the afternoons I go to the orphanages! This is my favorite thing. The girls are so excited to see me. Even though I have only been to some of the places once, they remember my name and exactly what I taught them. They are super beginners, but I am having them repair the clothes with me rather than practice on the strips of fabric. The clothes I repair are in such bad condition, I know it would only cost me a few rupees to replace them... and if I had a machine (I hand stitch everything) I could do so much more, and such a better job. What I am doing is making things wearable. I don't even worry about holes. We are talking entire inseams undone, etc.



Because the internet is so dodgy...
you are going to have to be satisfied with images
rather than brilliant prose about our little trek to Everest...
The airplane that landed on (arguably) the shortest runway in the world!

Amazingly cool glacier behind me!

Me and a Didi in Dole, Nepal

The Malaysian team that was off to summit... stayed in our guest house in Gorak Shep

Dennis and his son Dan from Zimbabwe and Canada.
(Dennis has summited a couple times)

Our new best friends, Floor and Tim, from The Netherlands

Me in a glacier!

Namche... the most beautiful of the villages (in my opinion)

My new friend in Thamel

Bad news, good news... balance

Yesterday we were informed that a division of Maoists have taken control of the Manahara landless community. The leader of the community has been abducted, and the people are being forced to comply with the group's requests. Needless to say, volunteers are not going to be working with this community now unless or until the situation changes. This is so unfortunate because VSN has so many projects going on with this group. We just opened a clinic... I had my income generation group... We also have contributed funds so they can make a gravel road to go through the center of the community, which will cover up some of the sewage drainage. Fortunately most of the projects will continue with Nepali volunteers and staff only. Also, our efforts to help with the clean water and toilet issue can continue, we just have to hope that the Maoists leave.

Anyway... I am so frustrated with the whole situation. Several weeks ago, I interviewed many of the community members (I have photos and write-ups of my interviews). A large percentage of them abandoned their homes to escape Maoists rebels, and now here they are being faced with a similar problem. Today I spent about three hours reviewing footage from my documentary. (I edit it this week.) At one point I am interviewing this woman in the community. I asked her what situation brought her family here from their village. She said the Maoists. I asked her if anyone in her family had been hurt or killed. Tears filled her eyes and she just looked at the camera. So I totally lost it in the studio when I saw that clip. AHHHHHHHHHHHH

For those of you concerned with my personal safety, please don't be worried. We are well taken care of here. This is a internal political issue that doesn't concern foreigners. I actually live in a suburb of Kathmandu, so the palace, government offices, etc. are far away. I haven't seen any demonstrations besides strikes... Right now there is a teacher's strike, so schools have been closed for a while. This is also a frustration for the volunteers who work in schools... every morning the students must listen to the news to see if the schools will open. This strike is not affiliated with the Maoists.

Yesterday we had a meeting with the current volunteers... a group of us are going to visit all the orphanages again (taking advantage of the fact that they are out of school). Two doctors, two girls doing hygiene eduction and myself will split the orphans into groups rotate them. The doctors will give check ups, Bryony and Jessica will teach about hand washing, etc., and I will inspect and repair their clothing. If I have time, I will teach some more of the kids basics like threading a needle, etc. We will go to a different orphanage everyday. I am excited because so much will be accomplished.

Today I visited Radihka, the committee leader for my village income generation project. She took me into her shed and showed me what the women have done! They have become knitting machines! Hats, socks, sweaters, pants.... Tumala, the teacher is no longer coming, they are just honing their skills. They have arranged w/ Tumala to call her if they have questions or run into problems. What they have done in a month is unbelievable!!! I am ecstatic, and they are too! She also specifically told me that they did not want any more supplies from me. They are going to buy their own supplies from now on. This is awesome firstly because we intended not to give them anymore supplies, and secondly because it is an indication of their independence and motivation to succeed. I am going back in a few days and we will have the marketing committee member schedule a time to visit the orphanages supported by VSN. She will take measurements, etc. of the children and VSN will place a large order. I can't begin to describe how great this is. Not only do 20+ women have a skill that will be helpful to their families... that they can teach their daughters, etc... they are doing so much more with their skill! My vision has come to fruition! Yeah!

Because of this success, VSN is going to use this template for other projects. For example, the same group of women expressed a desire to learn to read. No volunteer is able to teach how to read and write the Nepali Sanskrit... but we can bring in local teachers and provide materials etc. We just got a Nepali volunteer who is interested in working exclusively with women. I just volunteered her to spearhead the literacy program...

Yesterday, Yet (a doctor from Holland) and Jessica (a pre-med student from Vermont) and I were discussing the nature of volunteer work. There is this theory that only the volunteer benefits from volunteering... however, after today I think that is unfounded. Needless to say, today was a good day.

Tomorrow I am in the studio and off to the orphanage!
Namaste

Everest Base Camp

An important Monestary in Tengboche

Mt. Everest! View from Kalapatar

I made it over the Chola Pass! A steep assent in the snow at 5300+ meters

Hey everyone! I have been in a different part of Nepal for a while... no internet access or phones or cars... yaks only. We went on a little trek to Everest Base Camp. I climbed insanely high peaks (Kalapatar - 18,500 feet was my tallest), and saw the most beautiful parts of the earth. I should be most impressed by the mountain Everest... it was definitely amazing. However, I was most fascinated by the huge glaciers. I had seen Glaciers in Montana, but not like these... they were miles wide and long. It was also completely silent, so you could here ice shifting. We had to cross a few, and it felt like a star wars movie.. caverns and silence...

This is definitely one of the most beautiful regions of the world. In the lower regions there are beautiful trees and vege

I met the greatest people. Where I live in Kathmandu is primarily Hindu. The Solukumbu region is primarily Buddhist, and it is a totally different experience.

I am healthy and happy... my feet hurt a little, but all is well.

I have so much to do now that I'm back in Kathmandu. Tonight or tomorrow, I will try to compose a beautiful blog about the details of my experience...

Third World Peace

Allow me to share the random things I saw the other day as I was walking to the landless people community. First, four men dressed only in their underwear carrying a bier with a dead body on top. The body was covered with a light sheet. White is the color of morning, hence the underwear. They were just walking down the street along with the pedestrians, cyclists, motorcycles, buses, goat herders and cows. After I walked down the steep hill of trash to get to the community, (I usually cross the river stepping on a makeshift bridge of sandbags, but the river is too high, and I don't want my feet to touch that water) I saw a squealing pig being dragged into its pen. Just as I looked, I saw a man raise a machete and... I've seen a pig slaughter or two in my time, so it wasn't too disturbing. I am instead disturbed by the large number of naked children I see daily. Last sight to complete the image - a 2 or 3 year old boy defecating in the piles of trash while his mother and the cows look on. They have no other toilet facility, so a trash pile seems a more reasonable solution than the river they bathe in... but still.

Yesterday was a bus strike in Kathmandu. Today is a teacher's strike. We left for church early because Rick and I were speaking... it usually takes 25 minutes. An hour later we arrived barely in time. All the roads were blocked, and apparently it is trendy to through rocks at cars and buses during strikes. Our amazing cab driver took us on all these back roads... road is not really the best term. Dirt paths, fields, sidewalks, cobblestone paths in front of temples... A couple times we were going up and down hills that were so steep, I was ready to get out and push the car. Our ride back was even crazier. Today is completely normal again. By normal, I mean no strike.

Today I am start filming for the documentary. The crew should arrive any minute, and then we are off to get footage of all our projects - past, present and planned. I am selecting the shots, and we are hiring someone else to edit it. Tej wants me to narrate it as well... I'll see how it goes. This morning we had no water, so I did not shower. The only day that I will be on film... and I couldn't even wash my face. For the past two weeks there has been a petrol shortage, so I'm totally accustomed to cold showers. These past couple of days, the third world differences have been more present than before.

Just so y'all know that I'm really here

Tumala dressing me in a Saree... I didn't choose the color, but all the Nepalis told me that lime green looked fabulous with my fair skin. Everyday people tell me they want my skin. I never hear that in the US... hmmm

The young adults of the LDS church in Kathmandu (there are a couple visitors too)

A few of my village children in Gothatar

This week was all about mud

Hey everyone!

I've given up on posting pictures, because the connection is so poor! I also haven't been online forever! Life without internet and cell phones is pretty nice. A million things have happened in the past week, so let me fill you in as much as I can...

I am working on four projects:

1. I teach English to the children in the village of Gothatar. I walk 45 min there and back. The class starts at 7am, so I wake up at 5am or earlier. My kids are adorable and fun. The older class is getting more courageous. They have learned English from a book, so the words are there, but they have never attempted to use it. I am teaching this class grammar and pronounciation. Today we learned how to emphasize question words and answer words. Often they miss class because they have to till the soil or do a ritual bathing, but I always have a good group. The kids wear the same clothes everyday... which are falling apart and either too big or too small. They are very humble and grateful, but they are also kids... so they can be brats too! My younger class is adorable. They love to draw pictures, so I save the last 10 minutes of class for drawing pictures of what we learned (eg. today we learned to correctly pronouce the letter B. and talked about yesterday, today and tomorrow. They had to draw B words or what they did yesterday) Compared to where we started, they have made so much progress! They are being creative and bold! I love the class. It has been raining a lot at night, so my outdoor classroom is really muddy, but we just embrace it. I hang out in the mud with the cow looking on, and flies swarming... it's great!

2. Orphanage work. In the evenings, I am going to different orphanages that VSN is working with to mend clothing for the children. I am also teaching some of the older kids how to sew on buttons and mend basic tears. The kids are precious. One orphange has 43 kids and 2 staff members. When I walked in, 20 kids latched on to me and wouldn't let go! I was doing the whole walking with 2 children wrapped around each leg! Loved It! I am going back to that orphanage on Wednesday! A volunteer who works at one, mentioned the atrocious conditions of the clothing, and I said, "I can fix them!" The kids gather round as I sew. The other night, I brought several things home, to do after dinner. Aama (my Nepali mom) came upstairs and helped me. She also came with me to my knitting class! My family (in America and Nepal) are the most charitable people I have ever met!

3. I started a second women's income generation program today! This is a prescedent for VSN, and I am so excited. The women's knitting group in Gothatar have all made hats and booties... VSN is ordering 160 hats to give to the orphans, so the women will definitely make money. Tomorrow, I am traning a committee (selected by the women) in recording keeping and sales. They are stoked.... When I walk home from Gothatar, I am giddy. The second group will be a little more challenging. It is in the landless community, and we found a landless woman to be the instructor. We found 7 women to form the group, but 20 showed up... overwhelming the teacher. I am presently drafting a budget to show the costs of these programs, so they can be perpetuated. If anyone reading this blog is interested in helping... email me at tahoeliz@yahoo.com. $20 can go a long way! I'm just putting it out there, because I spent all my extra cash (and then some) getting here. Otherwise, I would do more more more!

4. I am working to help VSN become an international NGO. This includes my efforts with the landless community water project. If we partner with other NGOs and are set up to receive large donations, so much can be done. I have seen first hand that this organization has pure motives and a sincere desire to help Nepali people. VSN is helping individuals not causes, so I believe it is a worthwhile effort. Tez, the founder, has asked me start an chapter in the US. I am seriously considering it.

Wow... I have so much more to write, but I have to go! On Wednesday and Friday I went to a Hindu wedding (it is a five day affair). Milan and Tumala dressed me in a Saree! I looked hot in my lime green and yellow sequined number! I also got to ride on the back of a motorcycle through the psychotic traffic of Kathmandu, where there are no rules... none!

Lovin it here! I miss you all!
Namaste
~Liz

Church in Nepal is very familiar. I met most of the young adults, who make up a large percentage of the congregation, when Rick took them to ice-cream our first week. We went to a restaurant where all the waitstaff are deaf. They are amazing kids. I have since spent more time with them, and I love to hear about their lives. There is one girl, who is an investigator who really latched on to me. Her name is Yamuna. She is 19 and about half my size. Each time I see her, I get to see first hand the reality of this culture. She has a “boyfriend” (in Nepal that means a guy she talks to a lot... no pda or dates or anything here). He is a lower caste, so she knows that they cannot ever get married. Her parents like him, but... This week she told me that her good friend commit suicide because she was not allowed to marry the guy she loved... she was to have an arranged marriage. Yamuna had just been to her friend's burning. I made her promise me that no matter what she would not consider that path if things do not work out with her boyfriend. We had just heard this amazing lesson from Rick on how we are all Children of God, and I really hope that she internalized the message. She told me that a lot of young people commit suicide for the same reason.

The Service is identical to every other place in the world. It is done in a mixture of Nepali and English. The teachers and speakers usually start in English and then translate. I definitely heard more Nepali then English... which is fine by me. All the girls wear traditional Nepali dress (Kurta Surwals and Saris) the men wear shirts and ties.

This past Friday was Nepali New Years. Rick and I met the two couple missionaries serving here for dinner and then went back to their homes to stay. It was a mansion compared to the other dwelling options in Kathmandu. They were so nice... I painted Sister Taysom's fingernails and we talked about her mission experience thus far. Both couples are humanitarian workers. They are currently working on water purification projects, eduction, etc. Proselyting is not allowed in this country, so if anyone is interested in the church, they must seek it out themselves and be taught by Nepali people only. On Saturday (the only free day in Nepal) we went to institute in the morning, church in the afternoon, and a fireside with the young adults after that. The kids are so dedicated because they spent the entirety of their only free day at church!

I was in a talent show on Sunday. It was totally last minute. They asked me on Saturday at church...I sang Let it Be by the Beatles. My neighbor, Babish, is really good on the guitar, and agreed to accompany me. It was a church activity, and Babish and Nabina and Nabina's twin sister came with me. I was glad they got to see so many Nepalis at church w/ Rick and I. There were at least 150 people there... It was awesome, like a cultural arts presentation with lots of Nepali and Hindi dances, Nepali songs, Nepali comedy acts, etc. Rick did the Cha-Cha with a girl in the branch. They had begged me to perform, so I though they were wanting for acts, but not so! There were so many, and by the time I was on stage it was almost over, and I was super nervous. However, Babish and I totally rocked it! I forgot how much fun it is to perform in front of crowds. Rick videoed it, so I can show y'all. I'm sure out of all the other photo and video footage, you're going to me most excited to hear me singing. :) The Beatles number in the midst of all the native music and dance was pretty random, but we all had a good time.